Russia is no longer bound by "moral obligations" against providing S-300 missile defence systems to the Syrian military, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in an interview published on Friday.
The system, touted as being able to shoot down airborne targets at a range of 300 kilometres, would enable the Syrian military to better defend against Western airstrikes, such as those that happened last weekend.
Russia promised not to supply such systems to the Syrian military about a decade ago because of concern that could lead to destabilization of the country, Lavrov said in the interview, published by state news agency RIA Novosti.
"Now we do not have such moral obligations," Lavrov said. Russia is the main military backer of the Syrian state, and its support for Damascus helped turned the tide in the country's civil war.
The Syrian military already has earlier-generation S-200 systems. Russia also has S-400 systems at the airbase it uses on Syria's north-western coast.
Providing S-300 systems would be sure to provoke the ire of neighbouring Israel and possibly Western powers, such as the United States, Britain and France.
Those three Western countries conducted strikes on Syrian state targets last weekend on the allegation that the Syrian military used chemical weapons on a rebel-held area near Damascus.
